Passive safety devices are known which have a safety belt fastened at one end to an anchor point maintained in a guide extending diagonally across the door panel, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,583,726, for example. Characteristically, the anchor point in this type of device is moved by an actuating mechanism which is controlled in response to movement of the door so as to apply the safety belt about the vehicle occupant when the door is closed and lift it off when the door is opened.
It can be readily appreciated, however, that if the customary arm rest, extending horizontally and projecting toward the vehicle interior, were attached to the door, the movement of the belt anchor point in the diagonal guide would be obstructed or impaired. It is therefore a principal purpose of invention to provide, in conjunction with a passive safety device of the kind described above, an arm rest on the door which is passively adjustable such that it will not hinder movement of the belt anchor point in the guide.